Bolt from the Blue

Lightning kills man beneath cloudless sky

A Dade landscaper died after being struck by an unusual type of lightning that's stronger, hotter, lasts longer and strikes from clear skies.

By TERE FIGUERAS NEGRETE AND LUISA YANEZ

lyanez@MiamiHerald.com

COURTESY WFORCBS4

David Canales died after being struck by lightning.

• On the web | Learn more about lightning safety
• Video | Lightning strike kills man

With no rain or even clouds to warn him of the danger, death came literally out of the blue Thursday to a self-employed landscaper. The killer was a powerful bolt of lightning that cracked through perfectly clear skies.

David Canales, 41, of West Miami-Dade, was on the job at a Pinecrest home when the bolt hit. It first seared a tree, then traveled and struck Canales, standing nearby.

Experts said Canales was killed by a weather phenomenon fittingly called a ''bolt from the blue'' or ''dry lightning'' because it falls from clear, blue skies. He was pronounced dead at South Miami Hospital.